Bonnet Hill Mine

Past Producer in Shenandoah county in Virginia, United States with commodity Manganese
Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Host and associated rocks
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Geologic structures
  10. Ore body information
  11. Controls for ore emplacement
  12. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  13. Mining district
  14. Land status
  15. Ownership information
  16. Production statistics
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10080726
MRDS ID W032072
Record type Site
Current site name Bonnet Hill Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -78.505, 39.01725 (WGS84)
Elevation 454
Relative position 1.3 KM (0.8 MI) NORTHWEST OF ZEPP.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Shenandoah(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Wardensville(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Winchester(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Cumberland(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

North Fork Shenandoah(hydrologic unit)

Potomac(hydrologic accounting unit)

Potomac(hydrologic subregion)

Mid Atlantic(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

George Washington National Forest(National Forest)

National Forest FS(Type of land area)

FS(Federal land areas administered by FS)

George Washington and Jefferson National Forest(National Forest)

National Forest FS(Type of land area)

FS(Federal land areas administered by FS)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Shenandoah

Comments on the location information

  • ABOUT 2.2 KM (1.4 MI) NORTH ON STATE ROAD 746 FROM ITS INTERSECTION WITH STATE ROAD 600 TO END OF ROAD: MINE IS 0.55 KM (0.3 MI) SOUTHEAST FROM 746 AT THE CREST ON THE NORTHEAST END OF BONNET HILL.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Manganese Critical Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Psilomelane Ore
Pyrolusite Ore
Chert Gangue
Limonite Gangue

Analytical data

Result STOSE AND MISER REPORTED 14 ANALYSES OF MANGANESE ORE, BOTH SOFT ORE AND HARD LUMP ORE. THE SAMPLESHOWED 49.58 TO 59.53 PERCENT MN, AVERAGING 55.79 PERCENT MN: 0.10 TO 1.87 PERCENT FE, AVERAGING 0.77 PERCENT FE: THREE SAMPLES WERE ANALYZED FOR PHOSPHORUS, AVERAGING 0.139 PERCENT P : SIX SAMPLES WERE ANALYZED FOR SILICA, AVERAGING 9.09 PERCENT SIO2, HOWEVER, THE SOFT ORE (3 SAMPLES) AVERAGED ONLY 4.27 PERCENT SIO2, THE HARD LUMP ORE AVERAGED 13.91 PERCENT SIO2 (3 SAMPLES).

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Clay, Mud
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone
    Rock unit name Ridgeley Sandstone, Licking Creek Limestone, New Scotland Limestone;Clay Residuum
    Rock description Ridgeley Sandstone, Licking Creek Limestone, New Scotland Limestone;Clay Residuum

Nearby scientific data

(1) -78.505, 39.01725

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Ne-Sw Trend
Type of structure Local
Structure description Syncline And Anticline

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR, BLANKET
    Strike NE
    Dip 30 DEG SE (AVERAGE)
    Thickness 2.4M
    Length 122M
    Width 18M
    Depth to top 0M
    Depth to bottom 29M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Clay Residuum

Comments on the geologic information

  • ORE ZONE OCCURS IN CHERT AND CLAY RESIDUUM DERIVED FROM THE WEATHERING OF THE LICKING CREEK AND NEW SCOTLAND LIMESTONES AND AT THE BASE OF THE RIDGELEY SANDSTONE.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1848
Discoverer William Remsen
Year of first production 1916
Year of last production 1920

Mining district

District name Cedar Creek Valley Mining District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner J. Carson Adkerson
  • Type Owner
    Owner George Washington National Forest

Production statistics

  • Year 1916
    Material ORE MN
    Accuracy Accurate
    Description Ap_Grade: ^57% Mn, 1% Fe
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Ore Iron Iron 1wt-pct
    Major Ore Manganese Manganese 57wt-pct
  • Year 1917
    Material ORE MN
    Accuracy Accurate
    Description Ap_Grade: ^58% Mn, 0.75% Fe, 6% Sio2: Valued At $16,800
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    SiO2 Ore Silica Silica 6wt-pct
    Ore Iron Iron 1wt-pct
    Major Ore Manganese Manganese 58wt-pct
  • Year 1918
    Material ORE MN
    Accuracy Accurate
    Description Ap_Grade: ^57+% Mn, 0.75% Fe, 4% Sio2: Valued At $6,500 (?)
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    SiO2 Ore Silica Silica 4wt-pct
    Ore Iron Iron 1wt-pct
    Major Ore Manganese Manganese 57wt-pct
  • Year 1919
    Period 1916-1919
    Material ORE MN
    Accuracy Accurate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^Ave. 55% Mn, 1.1% Fe, 5.7% Sio2, Valued At $30,700
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    SiO2 Ore Silica Silica 6wt-pct
    Ore Iron Iron 1wt-pct
    Major Ore Manganese Manganese 55wt-pct
  • Year 1919
    Material ORE MN
    Accuracy Accurate
    Description Ap_Grade: ^48% Mn, 2% Fe, 7% Sio2: 0.2% P: Valued At $3,000
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Ore Phosphorus-Phosphates Phosphorus 0wt-pct
    SiO2 Ore Silica Silica 7wt-pct
    Ore Iron Iron 2wt-pct
    Major Ore Manganese Manganese 48wt-pct

Comments on the production information

  • IN 1916, 40 LT WERE SHIPPED, VALUED AT $4,400. 1917 DATA INCLUDES GODLOVE MINE PRODUCTION. TOTAL REPORTED PRODUCTION WAS 12 CARLOADS, OF WHICH 8 WERE CHEMICAL ORE AND 4 WERE METALLURGICAL ORE. PRODUCTION FIGURES INDICATE AMOUNT OF ORE MINED, ALL OF WHICH WAS SHIPPED UNLESS NOTED.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Length 92M
    Overall depth 12M
    Overall length 111.56M

Comments on the workings information

  • ORIGINAL WORKINGS CONSISTED OF NUMEROUS PROSPECT PITS UP TO 1.8 M (6 FT) DEEP, SEVERAL SHAFTS 9 TO 12 M (30 TO 40 FT) DEEP, SHORT IRREGULAR DRIFTS RUNNING FROM THE SHAFTS, 2 OPEN CUTS, AND 3 TUNNELS. ALL WORKINGS WERE CAVED BY JULY, 1920. 1 TUNNEL IS ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE RIDGE OTHER TWO TUNNELS ARE ON THE EAST SIDE. ON THE EASTERN SLOPE THE UPPER TUNNEL WAS ABOUT 9 M (30 FT) BELOW THE CREST OF THE RIDGE AND THE LOWER TUNNEL WAS ABOUT 26 M (85 FT) BELOW THE CREST AND WAS 91.5 M (300 FT) LONG AND TRENDED WEST-NORTHWEST. IN 1982, TWO LARGE OPEN CUTS, 6 TO 12 M (20 TO 40 FT) DEEP, NUMEROUS CAVED PITS AND SHAFTS UP TO 1.8 M (6 FT) DEEP, AND 3 CAVED TUNNELS WITH ASSOCIATED DUMPS WERE SEEN. SEVERAL TRENCHES AND A SMALL OPEN CUT WERE ALSO SEEN. MINOR ORE EVIDENT ON DUMPS.

Comments on development

  • MINE WAS FIRST WORKED IN 1848 BY WILLIAM REMSEN BUT NO ORE WAS SHIPPED FROM IT AT THAT EARLY DATE. IT WAS NEXT WORKED BY C.M. CLAY UNDER THE TRADE NAME U.S. MANGANESE & MINERAL CO., BEGINNING IN 1916 AND ENDING IN THE SPRING OF 1919. HIS TOTAL PRODUCTION IS REPORTED TO HAVE BEEN 7 CARLOADS, ALL OF WHICH WAS HIGH-GRADE CHEMICAL ORE. 2 CARLOADS OF THIS WERE SHIPPED TO THE NATIONAL CARBON CO., OF CLEVELAND, OHIO. BEGINNING IN JULY, 1919, THE MINE WAS OPERATED BY J. CARSON ADKERSON, WHO ASSUMED THE LEASE FROM C.M. CLAY AND DR. BLACK. MINE CLOSED IN FEBRUARY, 1920, BECAUSE OF LITIGATION OVER THE MINING LEASE, AND HAS NOT REOPENED SINCE. MR. ADKERSON'S PRODUCTION CONSISTED OF 5 CARLOADS OF ORE, OF WHICH 4 WERE SHIPPED AS METALLURGICAL ORE AND ONE AS CHEMICAL ORE.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    STOSE, G.W., AND MISER, H.D., 1922, MANGANESE DEPOSITS OF WESTERN VIRGINIA: VGS BULL 23, 206 P.

  • Deposit

    MONROE, W.H., 1942, MANGANESE DEPOSITS OF CEDAR CREEK VALLEY, FREDERICK AND SHENANDOAH COUNTIES, VIRGINIA: USGS BULL 936-E, P. 111-141.

  • Deposit

    POWELL, S.L., 1919, REPORT ON MANGANESE DEPOSITS IN FREDERICK AND SHENANDOAH COUNTIES: UNPUBLISHED REPORT, ECONOMIC GEOLOGY FILES, VDMR, 8P.

  • Deposit

    VDMR MINERAL RESOURCE FILE

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit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
Deposit THE ORE BODY OCCURS IN CHERT AND CLAY DERIVED FROM WEATHERING OF THE UPPER PART OF THE HELDERBERG LIMESTONE GROUP. IT PARALLELS THE BEDDING OF THE CHERT AND CLAY AND ON THE AVERAGE IS 2.4 M (8 FT) THICK IN THE SHAFTS.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-FEB-1982 Trimble, David C. (Sweet, Palmer C.) Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.